More colorectal cancer screening urged

By Pamela Fayerman, Vancouver SunMarch 12, 2012

Nearly half of patients with colorectal tumours had their cancers diagnosed when they showed up in the emergency department with severe complications like hemorrhage, bowel obstruction or perforation, according to a new BC Medical Journal study on patients in Vernon. Being diagnosed so late meant higher disease and treatment complications, hospital stays, health system costs, admissions to long-term care and deaths, compared to patients diagnosed earlier. The “alarming trend” in the study done on all cases of colorectal cancer at the Vernon Jubilee Hospital over a one-year period, was observed by general surgeon Dr. Hamish Hwang. In an interview, Hwang said he did the research after moving to Vernon from Vancouver. He was disturbed by the shockingly high number of patients who don’t know they have colorectal cancer until they’re rushed to the emergency department, sometimes too ill to be able to withstand surgery and other treatment. The 43-per-cent rate is the highest a study like this has ever shown, anywhere in the world. Previous studies have shown rates ranging from six per cent to 34 per cent. Colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer in men (third in women) and the most common cause of cancer death in non-smokers. Yet it is preventable through screening tests that detect pre-cancerous polyps. B.C. does not have a colorectal cancer screening program like it does for breast and cervical cancer, even though medical professionals and advocates have for years urged the provincial government to put one in place. Colorectal cancer screening programs, which target those over age 50, can reduce death rates by up to 83 per cent, and incidence by up to 81 per cent, according to a 2010 University of B.C. study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. The same study found screening programs are cost-effective because they avoid treatment costs associated with cancer cases. (more)

Colorectal Surgeon song by Bowser and Blue.